Contemporary graphical user interface-based computer operating systems generally utilize user profiles to differentiate between users. For example, a particular user may be prompted to log in, that is, authenticate to a user profile established on an operating system before gaining access to a desktop environment of the system. In some operating systems, the user may authenticate to a desktop environment by supplying a user identity. In other systems, the logon may include both supplying a user identity and another authentication input, such as a password or biometric data.
Once a user gains access to a desktop environment using a particular user profile, the underlying operating system generally determines a user's ability to access data and computing resources based on the user profile. Depending on the access privileges associated with a particular user profile, a user may be granted access to certain computing resources, but denied access to other computing resources. However, unless the particular user profile is configured to enable the user to modify the user's own access privileges, the user is unlikely to have recourse once access to a computing resource is denied. In other words, existing user authentication and log in methods for operating systems generally provide only one type of access per user.